Martin Scorsese: Interviews

Conversations With Filmmakers Series

by Peter Brunette (Editor)

From the moment he captured the film world's attention with Mean Streets (1973), a portrait of life at the fringes of the Mob, it was clear that a dazzling cinematic talent had arrived on the scene. With Robert DeNiro, one of the most talented young actors from this film, Scorsese went on to make some of the greatest American films of the postwar period, including Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), and Goodfellas (1990). A Scorsese film seldom fails to stir controversy, for his devotion to realism has led him to forthrightly depict violence and its frightening randomness in the modern world. His biblical film also created quite a stir. This adaptation of Kazantzakis's The Last Temptation of Christ generated outrage among conservative religious leaders.

Scorsese, however, has not limited himself to contemporary, violent urban dramas or new interpretations of biblical subjects. Other widely heralded Scorsese films include Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), New York, New York (1977), The Last Waltz (1978), The King of Comedy (1983), After Hours (1985), The Color of Money (1986), Cape Fear (1991), The Age of Innocence (1993), Casino (1995), and Kundun (1998).

These interviews begin with conversations about the highly autobiographical Mean Streets (1973), which first brought Scorsese serious attention, and end with conversations about Kundun, an overtly political biography of the Dalai Lama of Tibet, released in early 1998.

"I look for a thematic idea running through my movies, he says, and I see that it's the outsider struggling for recognition. I realize that all my life I've been an outsider, and above all, being lonely but never realizing it."

Genres: Film, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 2 out of 5]

He hurts to read. Like, totally, because he, like, talks like this, and like doesn't quite finish his sentences when the interviewers...

Ouch.

Also, the book didn't really provide much helpful information because he'd avoid answering questions about his films whenever he was asked for specifics. Is that a coke thing, 'cause Tarantino does that too.

[Michael Jolls · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books never fail to inspire. A worthy update of the original... my copy is dripping yellow highlighter ink.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't give this a complete review because I didn't read every single interview in this book, and as such, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to offer a complete summation of the book to the reader. What I believe I can convey is the fact that this book is a wonderful resource for any and all people who, like me, admire the work and oeuvre of Martin Scorsese.

This book contains numerous interviews and small articles about the films of Martin Scorsese, while also digging into the man's personal motivations and understandings about cinemas. Topics range from his films Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Goodfellas, Casino, and ends at about the time he had released Kundun. Each essay allows the reader to observe and understand Scorsese's thoughts about the film and where he thought he was weak or strong.

The interviews sometimes don't go as in depth into the process and idea of cinema as I would like, but this book gave me what I wanted which was Scorsese talking about films, both his own and others.

[Nicholas Sokić · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does what it says on the tin. Full of wonderful insights into the creative process of a master of American cinema. The only real fault is one that can't be held against it -- it is old and only goes until 1999.

[Zachary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am honestly not as familiar with Scorsese's work as I'd like to be, but this collection of interviews really lit a fire in me to more deliberately explore his work. His energy is infectious and just bleeds through the pages of these interviews, with his reflections on film, life, ethnicity, culture, faith, and even music adding just so much to thinking about the few of his films that I have seen. Scorsese walks this fascinatingly fine line between being a studio filmmaker/commercial force and a total independent voice unhitched from the vagaries of the Hollywood systems. And he knows the peculiar place that he occupies and does an exceptional job working through it in real-time as he converses with other filmmakers and writers. There are certainly movies of his that I'd have loved to have had more interviews for (especially The Aviator), but this selection was overall incredible in its depth and coverage, and will certainly be a useful and unique reference for me as I try and explore his work in more detail.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marty sure likes to talk about himself.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

great insight into filmmaker Martin Scorese